8 simple ways to jumpstart change in your life.

I hate “before” and “after” pictures. In the first picture, the person slouches, pulls their waistband underneath a bulge of fat and stares with empty and desolate eyes in the camera. Even the lighting is bad. An undisclosed or ridiculously short number of days later, the after image tells another story. Happy smile. Pants sitting in the right spot. New muscles and curves lit perfectly.

It used to be bad enough but now with social media usually only containing the highlight reels, you can really feel like you aren’t making enough progress or you aren’t doing the right thing.

While those two moments might be and honest reflection of the circumstances, the real truth is transformation is NOT in the before and after. The 180 turnaround happens in the seconds, hours and days between the decision to change and the moment you choose to broadcast your process to the world. Changes happen in the daily, split second decisions. Today I am focusing on how to change the beliefs that limit your life. You have a limit for what you will tolerate and another limit for your peak experience. The reality is beyond what you believe. You can go further and faster than you know. You can have more money than you have dreamed. You can be closer to your partner than you could imagine. Even the worst relationship can be transformed into something. You only need to understand the space beyond your limits.

I want you to change, I want to teach you how to change, anytime you want, whenever you want. You are NOT a victim. You are an empowered person who should feel absolute freedom to change your life for the better AT WILL.

Here are 8 strategies to target your change and create results with simple actions.

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #1:  Change one thing and keep everything else the same.

Your life is not one unwieldy mass of disaster and impossibility. You experience wins every day and thankfully, life could probably be much worse, so perhaps this blog post is a quick moment for gratitude. Since your present life doesn’t need a complete overhaul to move a little closer to your best life, start with a laser-focus on a pocket of transformation. Choose a specific time of day or a meal to lower your caloric intake. Substitute a high sugar snack for one more natural, lower calories and increase fiber. Don’t change your entire diet, just that one area and keep everything else the same. You’ll find the process far less intimidating and easier to keep up. And, you’ll move forward in your 180. Spend less on a Thursday. Set aside one or two days a week as alcohol-free. Get up early one day a week and work on your book. One small change can move you forward just enough to notice a difference.

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #2: Identify your pattern and prepare for it.

Your life is a series of patterns of behavior. For instance, if you tracked your food for a few weeks, you likely eat a short list of foods, at around the same time every day. Just like muscles form around your posture (whether good or bad), your consistent actions are like muscles that hold up the structure of your life. You can spot-change your transformation by identifying a pattern that doesn’t help you and then planning an alternative. Like a muscular change, at first it will feel uncomfortable and might even make you a bit sore but you can create significant change with a little attention and planning. If you find yourself fighting with your spouse at the end of the day when you are both mentally and physically exhausted, plan around it. Talk about it and vow to pay attention to the triggers. Be a bit more patient, and count to 10 before you react. If you like to drink right after 5:00pm to take the edge off, just wait a few hours and do a workout, play a game with your kids or skype with your favorite friend. You might find you don’t need the alcohol to make the transition from work to home. If you tend to snack more between lunch and dinner or in the evening, find 2-3 low calorie snacks that will do the trick.

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #3: Target your actions and attention for a period of time to create change.

Transformation is achieved through consistent focused action, but don’t discourage yourself by looking into the endless future. We have never been able to do it before, and since we can’t do it all, we do nothing. Throw that kind of thinking out! I don’t know if you will always struggle with an Achilles heel in your life but why not set that aside and experience success in the near-term. Put all your extra funds towards paying off a credit card bill. Sell your unwanted furniture, exercise equipment and toys, return cans and bottles, gather your change and soon, the balance will shrink to nothing and you can move on to another bill. Organize that crazy room or closet in your home. Focus on promoting a specific product or service in your business. While the focused action and target might be temporary, your healthy behavior and internal strength won’t be. Don’t forget to celebrate by the way!

 

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #4: Empowerment with one thing.

I believe everyone has an area of his or her life that “unlocks” transformation. Mine was and really still is, financial. No matter how high I could soar as an athlete or a businessperson, no matter how talented I was on the stage or on television, my financial distress somehow stunted me emotionally and physically. When I focused on financial improvements everything changed. I printed off my credit report and started resolving negative credit history. I opened a small credit card and consistently paid it off. I set up an online savings account and put away small amounts of money. I bought a car with my own credit. Each step towards financial health leaked light into others spaces in my life. What’s your think? A bit of weight. A relationship with a parent. A career change. Focus on one action and knock it out. Then, pick another thing to resolve. Grow the change, foster your confidence and increase momentum.

 

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #5: Experiment with a change.

Sometimes we know we want to change but we don’t know where to start. We just don’t know enough about our circumstances or ourselves to choose a path to transformation and it paralyzes us. I fell into experimenting as a method for transformation five or six years ago when my husband and I did a 30-day “sex experiment.” Sorry people, it was not as sexy as it was enlightening. We learned about each other and ourselves and improved our marital fluency. Today I see life as a best life laboratory and I have experimented with everything from getting up early every day, to restricting myself from gossip. Each experiment yields new information and transformation and it truly injects a bit of necessary humor into the improvement process. Do you have a theory – an idea that a specific action might change something? Try it in a small way, for a short time. Listen for what you need to know. Adjust it for your best life. And, at the end, discard what doesn’t work, absorbing the rest.

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #6: Choose a small goal and see what happens.

Sometimes you just need to know what happens AFTER the barrier. Your brain watches for patterns and then works with you to reinforce them. That’s why you seem to always stop running when you reach that one tree or you eventually talk about the same things with your friend by the end of the nights. Push a few steps past your limits and investigate the big, beautiful beyond. Run a few minutes further with a bit more intensity. Raise your heart rate during your walk. Write one chapter, or the outline. One room. One dollar amount. Choose to eat under a calorie count. Finish your resume. Make a few more phone calls. A couple of things will happen. You will teach yourself you are capable of more. And, it will light the fire to something better. Let your best life start with an inch and eventually you will go a mile.

Let your best life start with an inch and eventually you will go a mile.

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #7: One adjustment.

Transformation comes from the unfamiliar. It’s surprising how small and inconsequential it has to be. I like to stream shows while I am working and when I get stuck, sometimes I only need to switch to music or turn it off altogether and work in silence and suddenly everything seems just a bit easier. Where can you make a small adjustment. Maybe you should have a bin with clothes that fit you. Or a really clean tracking system to follow up with clients. Clear a production space in your office to get started on a project. Reach out to your ex proactively each week instead of avoiding it. Get all your stuff on one calendar and look at it every day at the same time. Tee up a big transformation with a small adjustment.

Jumpstart Your Change Strategy #8: Learn one thing.

The 180 world is much like Alice in Wonderland, where everything is the opposite of what we think. You might feel confident in your mastery of an activity or skill when real confidence comes from facing the unknown. Don’t allow fear to hem you in. After running my first mile at age 10, I am very comfortable throwing on my running shoes and hitting the trails. But without other physical challenges, I found my beloved activity yielded diminishing results. When I added kettlebell exercises, I felt uncomfortable, uncoordinated and weak. Awkwardly hefting those weights above my head with power created strength and coordination. Learn a new way of accounting, the latest project management method or a list-building tool. This week I’m going to do my first periscope. I’m scared to death. Here’s what I know: the change will not only give me a new skill and also build new confidence in my ability to handle new situations.

I believe if you change your vision, you can change your life. I know you want to transform something. Don’t blame the circumstances. Don’t blame the people around you. Don’t blame your genetics. Don’t blame anything. Focus on little actions that move your limiting beliefs out just a little further. Create more space for your transformation. And have fun. This life is your playground! Have fun as you try and fall and live in gratitude. It’s a privilege to have the chance to rock this moment.

Here’s to your 180! If you are not part of the 180 Life Group Coaching Experience,

I invite you to join right now!  Amazing change and low investment.

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